St. Paul Pioneer Press
A Woodbury native whose father was killed in the crash of a restored World War II fighter a year ago was one of two Marine Corps fighter pilots who died this week when their planes apparently collided over south-central Iraq.
The military notified the family of Kelly Hinz that he was killed in the Monday collision, WCCO-TV reported late Wednesday.
The 30-year-old Hinz, a 1993 graduate of St. Thomas Academy, an all-boys Catholic military school in Mendota Heights, is married and has a 7-month-old daughter. He had been stationed at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego.
Hinz's mother, Patricia, lives in Woodbury. Family members would not comment Wednesday night.
The Department of Defense on Wednesday named a New Jersey man as one of the pilots killed in the accident in Iraq, but did not name the other pilot as of late Wednesday night.
The Rev. Thomas Walker, pastor of St. Ambrose of Woodbury Catholic Church, where the Hinzes are members, said the family "would very much appreciate prayers."
The love of aviation ran in Hinz's family. His father, Donald Hinz, died a year ago after being critically injured in the crash of a historic World War II fighter plane during an air show near Red Wing, Minn.
Donald Hinz, a retired naval and commercial pilot who was 60 when he died, had devoted his retirement to restoring the P-51C Mustang fighter. The restoration is part of the Red Tail Project, an effort to honor the Tuskegee Airmen, the nation's first black military pilots, said Stan Ross, a project coordinator. The entire family, including Kelly Hinz, was involved in the program.
Donald Hinz was performing fly-bys during the Wings of Freedom Airshow when he reported losing power and attempted an emergency landing on May 29, 2004. The Mustang went down about a mile west of Red Wing Regional Airport, which sits across the river from Red Wing in Bay City, Wis. Donald Hinz died the next day.
In Iraq, Kelly Hinz and another pilot, Maj. John C. Spahr, apparently collided Monday while flying U.S. Marine Corps F/A-18 Hornet fighter jets.
"There was no initial indication of hostile fire in the area at the time contact was lost," a statement e-mailed from the military press center in Baghdad said. "The incident is under investigation."
Spahr's remains were found Tuesday. The Hornets lost contact with the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson about 10:10 p.m. Baghdad time Monday while engaged in support of military operations in Iraq.
Spahr was executive officer of Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 323, based at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego. He was a native of Cherry Hill, N.J., and a graduate of the University of Delaware.
The fuselages of both aircraft have been found, one about 15 miles from Karbala in southern Iraq, unidentified Pentagon officials told the Associated Press. The warplanes were flying at about 30,000 feet when communications were lost and they may have collided, AP cited Pentagon officials as saying.
Hinz and his three brothers, Benjamin, Kurt and Luke, all graduated from St. Thomas Academy. Hinz is survived by his wife, Molly, and his daughter.